TMJProblem

Hello, I just want to give a brief run down of my situation so it may sound "run-on"ish: Diagnosed by an orthodontist to have a "malocclusion"/"underbite", told I should get a "spider like clamp" put in to correct it, told by others that it was a hoax so I avoided it, year or so later started getting ear fullness, went to numerous ENTs, had an MRI done, had my ears flushed, had numerous meds, had an audiology, confirmed ears weren't the problem which brings me to now.

Things have worsened, I can notably feel/see my bottom jaw moving to the left. When I open my jaw I hear a grinding sound, my left hear is very "full" and when I swallow I sometimes hear a very loud crackling sound in my left ear (the same place the jaw is going towards). I've looked up TMJ and I have almost every symptom. My previous dentist made me a night guard which I use to prevent grinding.

I want to go back to the orthodontist to correct my bite because this is getting progressively worse and fast (I mean by the day/week/month, i'm surprised on how fast its progressing). I am not paranoid but these symptoms are very real. The problem is, I don't have medical/dental insurance right now.

What should be my best option? Go for an appointment? I hear if this goes untreated it can get way worse, and it's already not too fun. Will they charge much for a consultation out of pocket?

Thanks